In the next 30 years, the Genesee, Lapeer, and Shiawassee region will experience unprecedented growth and land use change. In fact, land in this region is being developed faster than ever before. Even though the population in Genesee, Lapeer, and Shiawassee counties has remained stable, growth continues to convert our natural landscape into a developed environment.

This rapid land consumption and the fragmented open spaces that result are the primary conservation challenges facing our nation, Michigan, and the GLS region today.

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As part of an ongoing focus on regional land use issues and as a means of building awareness about the value of green and open space, GLS Greenlinks was formed by the Flint River Watershed Coalition and the University of Michigan – Flint’s Center for Applied Environmental Research in the fall of 2003.

Funding for this two year planning program has been made possible through the generous support of the Ruth Mott Foundation, the Saginaw Bay Watershed Initiative Network, Flint Rotary, the Kodak American Greenways Program, and the Michigan State University Land Policy Program.

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Green space refers to undeveloped or developed lands where the surface is permeable to rainfall and groundwater recharge. Greenways are corridors of protected open space, often following natural land and water features, that are managed for conservation and recreation purposes.

Green Infrastructure is all of the above and more. Green infrastructure is the ecological framework needed for environmental, social and economic sustainability – our nation's natural life support system.

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